What Could've Happened
by The-Bowtie-And-The-Fez
Summary: What if, in "Meat" instead of using rope to bind Rhys and Ianto, they used hand cuffs? How would things have turned out differently? What would people do about it? Who exactly is involved in it? And what's with Jack, Ianto, and Gwen? A Janto story with some Gwen bashing...don't like, don't read. Rated T because it's me! Suspense/Crime/Romance/Angst
1. Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1: IANTO

"Dave, Grab those handcuffs and secure these two, yeah?" The boss, Dale, yelled out. Ianto sighed inwardly with frustration. He couldn't get his way out of those. Couldn't they be normal villains, and use something more sensible, like rope?

He watched as Rhys was secured and then one of the men, who he recognized as Dave, approached him. Ianto glared at him as he roughly grabbed his arms, and pulled them behind his back, tightening the cuffs so that they dug into Ianto's skin. He tried not to wince, but it came out anyways.

"Sorry, does that hurt?" The man sneered, his voice dripping in sarcasm. "Well, maybe I should take the focus off of that, huh?" With that, the man punched him square in the jaw. Ianto stumbled backwards, not completely falling over, but still kneeling over with pain. He was pulled up almost right away by Dave, and Dale grabbed Rhys, and they were led away.

When they entered the large storage room, Ianto took one look at the creature, the living creature they were slaughtering, and tears came to his eyes. "What is it?"

Dale answered him. "The lads call it the cash cow." Before he could say anymore, the nurse for the creature ran out.

"Dale, what are you doing?"

"They couldn't bear to see us making money, Vic." He turned to Rhys. "Fancied some for yourselves, eh? Thought we'd be a pushover?" Ianto could see Rhys trying to muster up some strength to talk.

"Man, you're so out of your depth."

"It's funny, I was just thinking the same about you." He pushed Rhys out a little and leveled the gun with Rhys's head. "Show yourselves or I shoot the delivery boy!"

Ianto watched as Gwen came out almost immediately after Dale yelled out. He inwardly moaned. "Okay! There's no need to make any threats." Dale looked back over at Ianto.

"Just the two of you, is it?" Ianto looked at him, then back at Gwen, remaining silent. "Gun down, kick it over here."

"I don't have a gun." Gwen said, moving forward a little. 'Don't lie to them Gwen!' Ianto thought desperately.

"He had one, so you must have!" Dale yelled, nodding towards Ianto.

"Okay." Gwen reached behind her, grabbing out her gun and holding it up, then slowly placing it down on the floor "Okay."

"Any more of you? And before you awnser, have a proper think. Cause if you lie…" Dale moved his gun so it was pointing at Gwen. "I will shoot you." Ianto looked around, hoping Gwen would carefully consider her next words.

"There's just me." Dale seemed to contemplate her awnser, then finally accept it.

"Get against the drum!"

"We can help you out, Dale." Gwen said, still moving closer.

"Yeah, help yourselves more like." He gestured to Rhys. "Come on, stand next to her." He glanced back at Ianto. "You, too." He threw Rhys over to Gwen and Ianto started to move towards Gwen, but he didn't get very far before…

"Dale! Two more. Far corner. They can't get out, it's locked." A voice shouted from somewhere above and behind Ianto. Dale grabbed Ianto before he could get any further away, pointing the gun at his head.

"Take out your weapons, stand where I can see you!" Dale yelled out to the others, who Ianto assumed were Jack and Tosh. Dale pressed the gun more forcefully to Ianto's head, as the others started to appear. Jack immediately started to talk. 'Typical Jack.'

"You know what you've got here, Dale?"

"Shut up now." He now had the gun pointed almost directly at Ianto's heart.

"It's an alien. A creature from another galaxy. It came through a rift in time and space, and it was unlucky enough to find you." Ianto was silently struggling against the handcuffs, but nothing was working…He just hoped he didn't die. He couldn't die, not without Jack knowing how he felt.

"Did you really think it originated on this planet?" Tosh added. "Have you ever seen anything like it before?"

"It can't be." Vic piped up. "Can it?"

"Look at it." Jack ordered. "Look at it." The creature breathed in deeply, and started to expand. Dale, still with Ianto, Vic, and Dave all backed away from it, although Ianto didn't want to exactly. It was a lost creature, far from home and family, and it needed to be shown compassion.

Dale tried to deny it. "It's just meat, that's all." But Ianto could tell he was scared…he was tightening his grip on Ianto's shoulder.

"You're carving up a sentient creature, and you've got to stop." Jack was really getting mad now, Ianto could tell…and that's when he noticed it. They were slowly backing towards a door. What was Dale's plan? Just to shoot him?

"And then what've I got? I'm making money here! This is my business! For the first time in my life, I've actually got something for myself!" Dale shouted.

"Dale, stop, you can still walk away from this." Gwen told him.

"No." He moved his gun from Ianto's head, and pointed it at Gwen. "You lied to me." Rhys jumped in front of Gwen, taking the bullet as a shoot rang out. He was suddenly being pulled through a door, and it was locked behind them.

"Jack!" Ianto yelled out behind him, as if he were completely oblivious to the gun now pointed once again at his head. He thought he heard Jack yell his name back, but he couldn't be to certain with Dale barking out orders.

"Dave, take some men and grab everything out of the safe. If someone tries to stop you, radio me in and be sure remind them that we still have a hostage here." He nodded towards Ianto. "Scott, meet me at the truck, but first go grab me a chair and some duck tape. And you, pretty boy..." Dale said, talking to Ianto now, "…you're coming with me. Wherever you people are from, I'm sure the others don't want to lose you. You'll make an excellent hostage." He pushed Ianto out a door, where a large truck was waiting. Dale yelled out for someone to start the truck and prepare to leave. Scott walked up to them carrying a wooden chair and a roll of duck-tape.

"What do you want me to do with this stuff boss?" Scott asked.

"Put the chair in the very back of the truck, and hold the Duck-tape. I'll be right there." Dale told him, all while looking for his other men.

"You know. I'm sure what Gwen said was right. We can help you." Ianto said calmly as Scott carried the chair onto the truck. Before Dale had time to respond, Dave and two other men ran up, carrying bags of cash. Ianto smirked. They even had the cliché money symbol on the side.

"What took you so long?" Dale asked.

"They caught up with us. We tried to radio you, but the Japanese one blocked the signal with some sort-of device. We told them, about the hostage. The one in the long coat got mad, kept saying that if we so much as lay a finger on his precious Ianto, he would hunt us all down and kill us very, very slowly." Dave said. Ianto smirked at him.

"What did you do about it?" Dale asked them, his grip on Ianto getting tighter and tighter.

"We killed him, sir. Left his friends to deal with it while we grabbed the cash and ran." Ianto knew Jack wouldn't stay dead, but these guys didn't know that. He had to act like Jack really was gone.

"J-jack is d-dead? B-but, he-he can't be." Ianto started to cry and tried to sink down to the ground, but Dale stopped him.

"Shut up! You've got bigger problems to deal with than just your friend being dead." He pushed Ianto into the truck, and pushed him to the very back, or front, depending on which way you look at it. He forced him to sit in the chair, and took the silver duck-tape from Scott. He wrapped it around Ianto four times, tightly then ordered the driver to leave.

Ianto started to talk to him. "You monsters. You killed Jack. And actually, that was a stupid mistake. The rest of my team won't stop until you are all dead. Then what are you gonna do, huh? What will you do?" Ianto screamed the rest at him, hoping that if he didn't know Jack couldn't die, that is what he would say. Before he could say anymore though, a piece of duck-tape was placed over his mouth, preventing him from talking anymore. So he just let the tears silently stream down on his face, and hoped to god for the best.

**A/N: I really appreciate reviews and I would love to know what you think of my story! I'll probably update it either tomorrow, or in a few days. Thanks a bunch!**

**-Harmony**


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2-JACK

Jack heard Dale tell Rhys and Ianto to go stand by Gwen and he thought they would have a chance…but when he heard someone call out that himself and Toshiko were there, his whole body prayed for Ianto and Rhys to have gotten to Gwen.

But as he walked around the crate he saw Dale grabbing the back of Ianto's suit, and all hope vanished when Dale pointed a gun at Ianto's head. His Ianto. His Ianto looked terrified. It took all of Jack's self control not to scream at Dale to let him go, now. Instead, he calmly lowered his gun to the floor, and started to talk.

"You know what you've got here, Dale?"

"Shut up now." He now had the gun pointed almost directly at Ianto's heart.

"It's an alien. A creature from another galaxy. It came through a rift in time and space, and it was unlucky enough to find you." Jack was trying really hard now not to run over to Dale, kill him, and save Ianto. But if he tried, he would lose Ianto.

"Did you really think it originated on this planet?" Tosh added. "Have you ever seen anything like it before?"

"It can't be." The nurse piped up. "Can it?"

"Look at it." Jack ordered. "Look at it."

Dale spoke again, this time with a scared edge to his voice. "It's just meat, that's all." Jack was beginning to lose his patience. Based on the look on Ianto's face, Dale was holding him pretty tightly.

"You're carving up a sentient creature, and you've got to stop." 'and you need to give me my Ianto back.' Jack finished the thought in his head. Dale would only use that information against them.

"And then what've I got? I'm making money here! This is my business! For the first time in my life, I've actually got something for myself!" Dale shouted, causing Ianto to flinch.

"Dale, stop, you can still walk away from this." Gwen told him.

"No." He moved his gun from Ianto's head, and pointed it at Gwen. "You lied to me." Rhys jumped in front of Gwen, taking the bullet as a shoot rang out. Jack picked up his gun, prepared to shoot towards Dale, but they were halfway through the door…with Ianto.

"Jack!" He heard Ianto shout out, in the most heartbreaking way.

"Ianto!" He yelled back, and he began to run to the door where they had disappeared into. Gwen stopped him. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Owen run though another door, and run over to Rhys.

"Jack! Rhys has been shot! How can you just run off like that?" Gwen said, accusingly.

"Listen Gwen, Rhys is gonna be fine. I'm leaving Owen with him. Right now, You, me, and Toshiko need to follow after them and save Ianto. Now come on." Jack turned and started for the door.

"No Jack. I am staying with Rhys. Rhys is the love of my life, Jack. I have to stay with him. Just because you don't have someone, doesn't mean you have to be heartless about mine." Gwen glared at him.

"Ianto is my someone. And if you want to stay with Rhys, fine. But I'm taking Owen with me." Jack turned and walked towards Tosh and Owen, who was busy bandaging Rhys. Gwen ran after him.

"What do you mean _your someone?_ Ianto is just the tea-boy." Gwen looked at him like he was pulling some sort-of mean prank.

"Ianto is more than just a tea-boy. Ianto is the best person I have _ever known._ Don't you dare talk about him that way. Owen, Tosh come with me. We're going after Ianto."

"Shouldn't I stay here with Rhys, Jack?" Owen asked.

"No. I want people I trust with me to help save Ianto. I don't trust Gwen. Not anymore." Jack growled, and started walking away. Tosh and Owen both exchanged a look with Gwen. "Come on!" Jack yelled to them. They followed behind him, running as that's what he was now doing. He walked up to the door that Dale dragged Ianto through.

"It's locked, Jack." Owen said.

"Not for long." Jack pulled out his gun and shot the lock off. "Come on! No time to lose..." They came across two doors. Jack looked between the two and made a split second decision to go right… He just hoped he wasn't wrong. They ran through to a corridor with a door at the end. Jack burst through with his gun out. Three men were grabbing a bunch of cash out of a safe, stuffing it into bags. They all looked up when Jack, Tosh, and Owen burst into the room, all grabbing a gun. The Torchwood agents all pointed a gun at a separate person each.

Jack spoke slowly, putting so much power into his voice, each word lower than the one before it. "Where…is…my…Ianto? If you so much as lay a finger on him, I am going to hunt all of you down and kill you very…very… slowly and painfully. So you better answer my question. Where's my Ianto?"

"The hostage will live if you allow us to leave." The one Jack pointed his gun at spoke to them.

"No! The hostage will live because I say so. You are really testing my patience. Where is he?" Jack growled out. One of the other men slowly raised his gun, unnoticed by everyone else in the room, and he shot Jack in the head, and Jack fell to the ground, dead. Owen and Tosh both ran over to Jack's body. Owen looked up at Tosh.

"Good thing he can't die, huh? He better wake up soon, but when he does, he's gonna be mad." Right on cue, Jack gasped for breath, the curse of Jack bringing him back once again. But this time, he was glad. Because now that he had the advantage that they thought he was dead, he could get Ianto back. Even if it killed him…again.

He looked at his team, or what was left of it. "Check out the rest of the warehouse. I want to know everything about this place, and everyone who was here."

"Where are you going?" Toshiko asked.

"To phone an old friend."


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3:

Ianto sat in the back of a truck with his kidnappers, yet all he could think about was Jack. Jack and his coat and the stopwatch and… his mind was just overrun with thoughts about Jack. All of his memories of Jack swirling around in his head. The others, especially Gwen, didn't realize it, but every time Jack died, it didn't just hurt Jack. It hurt Ianto too. But knowing he would come back always kept Ianto sane.

Ianto's thoughts were interrupted by Dale walking up to him. He pulled out his gun, and traced it down the right side of Ianto's face. "When we get to our next base, we've got some questions for you, mate." He moved his hand down to clamp Ianto's shoulder down. Ianto whimpered slightly. "Because you see…" Dale was whispering in his ear now. "…I want to know who you people are, and why you were at my warehouse. But, of course, we can't deal with that yet. For now, nighty-night!"

And with that, Dale knocked him out with the butt of his gun.

Jack pulled out his phone, dialing the number he knew all too well. It rang twice before he answered. "Hey. It's me. I need your help…yeah, usual place. Thanks."

After they had checked out the warehouse, they all went back to the hub, going in the 'tourist way', but before they could, a familiar 'whoosh, whoosh' could be heard. Jack smiled slightly, and Tosh and Owen looked at him.

"Jack? What is it?" Tosh asked.

"An old friend." Just as Jack said that, a blue police box fazed in and out of reality, then finally materialized before them. After a few moments, a man with floppy brown hair and green eyes stepped out. He was wearing the most ridiculous outfit any of them had ever seen that consisted of a tweed jacket, a pink shirt, red suspenders, a red bow-tie, and a FEZ! He looked at everyone, his eyes finally resting on Jack.

"Jack! Long time no see! How long has it been for you?" The man walked up to Jack and hugged him, which Jack returned, but didn't hold onto for that long, as he didn't want to feel like he was betraying Ianto. "Jack…what's wrong? Normally, you don't want to let go of my hugs." He looked closely as Jack. "Are you alright?"

"Honestly…no. But we'll talk about that inside. You've changed your face again. It's been about… a couple months? Yeah, something like that." Jack looked at The Doctor and he saw shock on his face.

The Doctor stared at him. He opened his mouth to say something, but before he could, two women and a man stepped out of the TARDIS.

"Doctor, where are we?" The red-headed girl asked.

"Uh…Cardiff, 21st century. I told you I got a call for help, Amy. Hang on…I'm missing something." He looked at Tosh and Owen. "Who are they?"

"This is Toshiko Sato, A.K.A Tosh and Dr. Owen Harper. They are two members of my team." Jack informed them.

"Isn't there supposed to be two more?" The Doctor asked. Jack nodded.

"Gwen Cooper is dealing with her fiancé who recently got shot, but she most likely won't be on the team anymore…and Ianto Jones is…" Jack broke off, his voice cracking, and tears filling his eyes. The Doctor stared at him. He had never, ever seen Jack like this. Jack took a deep breath. "That's actually why I called you… Why don't we go inside?"

Ianto awoke with a sharp pain on the back of his head from when Dale hit him. He took a look at his surroundings. He was in what looked like another warehouse, still held down to the chair, duck-tape still in place over his mouth. Since he had no idea how long he was out, he had no idea how far away Warehouse 2 was from Warehouse 1. He just hoped he didn't end up at Warehouse 13. Ianto laughed inwardly at the Sci-Fi show reference. That just brought tears to his eyes though… Jack and he watch the Sci-Fi channel together all of the time.

Ianto shook himself from that thought and looked around the room where he was at. It wasn't exactly small, but it wasn't big either. There was hardly anything in the room, aside from Ianto, his chair, and what looked like a table covered in…Ianto would've gasped if not for the tape… different kinds of weapons of all shapes and sizes. A torture chamber…That's where he was at. They said they had questions…looks like they were going to try to get their answers in whatever way they can.

Suddenly the door opened, and Dale and Dave entered the room. Dave walked over to the table and started playing with one of the weapons on the table. Ianto didn't see what it was though, Dale was blocking his view. "Well, you've finally woken up, haven't you? So… Ianto, Jack must've been something special, huh? You sat there crying about him for a long time. Oh, you've still got some tears, too. Dave, look at him. Crying still." He reached forward, wiping the tears from Ianto's eyes, which he moved away from.

Ianto tried to say something, but of course it didn't work, what with the tape covering his mouth and all, so it came out as more of a strangled cry. Dale ripped the tape off of his mouth. "Augh!"

Dale smiled. "Now then… First question, Who do you work for?"

"Like I would tell you." Ianto spat out. Dale hit him hard in the face .

"I suggest that you do…my friend Dave here hasn't tortured someone in, oh, so long. And he's so good at it. So I'd suggest you tell me the truth…" Dale grabbed Ianto's chin, lifting it up towards the ceiling "cuz I am sick and tired of you and you're friends lying to me." He pushed him back into the chair. "Who do you work for?" Ianto remained silent, glaring up at him. There was no way he was going to tell them anything. He will not betray Torchwood, and he will not betray Jack.

Dale stared at him. "Dave, our guest needs to learn to speak when he's spoken to… to answer questions when I ask them. I'll be back soon. Let's see if he'll talk then." Dale walked out of the room.

"Well then, pretty boy. What tool of fun should I use first?" As if he were answering his own question, he picked up a scalpel from the table. Ianto knew in that moment, he was never gonna be able to be in the autopsy ever again. He winced as Dave walked towards him, bearing the scalpel in his hand. He pressed the scalpel into the side of Ianto's face, and all he knew was pain.


End file.
